China Wants to be World’s AI Leader by 2030

The Chinese government is upping its Artificial Intelligence game , after launching a massive investment plan in the technology.

According to the MIT Technology Review, China’s State Council has announced a plan to build the national AI industry into a $150 billion behemoth, with the goal of making the country the world’s leader by 2030.

According to the scheme’s vision, China-brewed AI will have to catch up with the rest of the world by 2020, and achieve “major breakthroughs” by 2025, before pulling ahead of everyone else five years later.

Finance, agriculture, logistics and manufacturing are just some of the sectors China intends to improve by deploying AI.

The statement, according to the New York Times, will be accompanied by multibillion dollar investment in “moonshot” projects and research involving AI.

Both publications noted that the news emerges as Trump-led US is poised to axe funding for scientific research, including in AI; compounding that concern, the Technology Review points out how enhanced AI capabilities could give China the edge even in the military field.